LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 1983, Page 28

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28 MINUTES OF THE CONVENTION

and was in stable condition and that the possibility
existed that he might be released from the hospital late
Monday or Tuesday.

Missions, Evangelism, Social Ministry

Dr: Bohlmann referred the delegates to the number
of overtures contained in the Convention Workbook
relating to the area of Missions, Evangelism, and Social
Ministry and then introduced President Al Marcis,
President of the SELC District and chairman of the
floor committee dealing with these issues. With the use
of visual aids, Chairman Marcis directed the attention
of the delegates to the number of resolutions which
would be considered in the area of Missions, Evangel-
ism, and Social] Ministry during the convention. He
then introduced Res. 1-01A (TB 167) which encouraged
congregations to become increasingly aware of the
growing segment of aging persons in the population
and to utilize this largely untapped wealth of experience
and talents in their work. During the brief discussion
which followed the delegates added the words “ask the
Board for Social Ministry Services to continue to provide
leadership and” between the words “we” and “ask” in
line 28 (TB 167). They then adopted the resolution as
amended.

Greetings

President Bohlmann introduced the immediate past
president of the Synod, Dr. J.A.O. Preus, to the dele-
gates, who received him with a standing ovation. In his
brief remarks to the delegates Dr. Preus congratulated
those who had been elected to office and referred to the
work which is before the convention. He reminded the
delegates of the rich heritage which is ours as a result of
the work of Martin Luther, whose 500th birthday is
being celebrated this year, a rich heritage which
includes such things as the universal priesthood of all
believers, a strong confessional position, an emphasis
upon the Word of God, and a strong sense of mission. He
concluded by pointing to the fact that The Lutheran
Church—Missouri Synod has one major problem and
that occurs in the area of financial support of the Synod.
He reminded the delegates that they were in a position
to help to correct this situation.

Elections

Chairman Paul Wendling of the Floor Committee on
Registration, Credentials, and Elections explained the
voting procedures to be followed for the remaining Vice-
Presidents of the Synod. After the voting was completed,
the balloting was declared closed.

Forward in Remembrance

Dr. Gerhardt W. Hyatt, chairman of the special
financial effort in the Synod called Foward in Remem-
brance, reported to the delegates on the results of the
special effort and the use which is being made of those
special gifts which were received. Dr. Hyatt described
those gifts and pledges, which almost doubled the
original goal of 40 million dollars, as responses to the

promises of God and love for Him and His Son. It is
these things which have moved the church forward in
remembrance of His love and grace. In an interesting
and exciting audio-visual presentation Dr. Hyatt
reviewed the many projects in mission and ministry
which were made possible through the sacrificial gifts.

Closing Devotion

The closing devotion for the afternoon session was
led by Dr. Edward Westcott, executive secretary of the
Board for Mission Services. In his brief remarks, based

’ on a section from the Epistle to the Colossians, Dr.

Westcott reminded the delegates that the only way the
three billion people who do not yet know of Christ will be
reached is if the one-track purpose of St. Paul to share
that Gospel becomes a very personal goal for each
delegate and member of the Synod. The devotion was
closed with a prayer and benediction.

Session 4

Monday, July 11, Morning
Opening Devotion and Essay

President Bohlmann asked Dr. Robert Sauer, First
Vice-President of the Synod, to introduce the worship
and essay for the morning session. After the singing of a
hymn Dr. Sauer introduced Dr. Robert Preus, President
of Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, for
presentation of an essay entitled, ‘Captives of the
Word.” In his essay Dr. Preus pointed out that our God is
a living God who speaks and we are captives of His word
because itis a lifegiving Word, a pardoning Word, anda
transforming and sanctifying Word. We are captives to
the Word, which reveals Jesus Christ, who is the Word,
by whom all things were made; and it is Him we
proclaim.

President Bohlmann explained to the delegates that
essays during the remaining morning sessions of the
convention would be presented by presidents of some of
the colleges and seminaries of the Synod. The themes
for each day have taken the form of a statement which
indicates that “Dr. Luther Tells Us We Are...” followed
by the theme for that day. For example, the theme for
the Monday morning session was “Dr. Luther Tells Us
We Are Captives of the Word.”

After this explanation an exchange took place
between the delegates and Dr. Preus for the purpose of
explanation and mutual edification.

Announcement

Dr. Samuel Nafzger, executive secretary of the
Commission on Theology and Church Relations and
chairman of the Committee on Arrangements for the
Luther Celebration, reminded the delegates that the
script for the Luther Rally which had been held on
Sunday evening would be made available for congrega-
tions. He also indicated that the possibility of providing
a slide presentation to accompany the script was being
investigated. He gave special recognition to Professor
William Schmelder of Concordia Seminary, St. Louis,

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